


Like A Switch Has Been Flicked Somewhere

by vanessadingle (orphan_account)



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, MSR, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-24
Updated: 2016-12-24
Packaged: 2018-09-11 20:56:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9022423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/vanessadingle
Summary: Mulder and Scully's relationship begins as a platonic friendship but progresses to a romantic relationship. Like Scully herself says, "one day you look at a person and you see something more than you did the night before, like a switch has been flicked somewhere... and the person who was just a friend is suddenly the only person you can ever imagine yourself with"





	1. Tension

**Author's Note:**

> This is set immediately following episode 3x13 (Syzygy). Enjoy :)
> 
> I do not own any of the characters, they belong to Chris Carter, no copyright infringement intended.

"You just ran a stop sign back there Scully"  
"Shut up, Mulder"  
"Sure. Fine. Whatever."

\---------

They drove in silence for the next twenty minutes. Mulder’s hand jokingly gripped the door handle, his knuckles white, in an attempt to get a word out of his partner but to no avail. She simply gave him an icy sideways death stare and then her eyes returned to the road until they reached the airport. As she pulled up, she raised her eyebrows at him mockingly, making it overly clear that she had somehow miraculously managed to drive them safely to their destination without getting lost and that in fact, her tiny feet could indeed reach the peddles. She was overly arrogant as she stepped out of the car and retrieved her belongings, not waiting for her colleague to collect his but instead sauntering off towards check in. She was angry – more than angry, she was fuming. Not only was he being an ass, insulting her and showing her up in public - in front of people she strived to be professional around - but he risked throwing away the case all for the attention of some measly old blonde. Sure his personal life was his personal life, but did he have to try and pursue it even when they were on a case? And right in front of her – did he have no respect? Worst of all though, she was mad at herself, frustrated even... because she was jealous. It angered her further at this revelation and she quickened her pace, hurrying through the airport with no regard for Mulder or whether he was following behind her. She was just desperate to get back to Washington, to get away from him, she needed some space. It felt like she’d been following him around endlessly whilst he chased after Detective White and it left her feeling unnecessary because apparently anything she could do, Detective White could do 10 times better, she couldn’t wait to get back to Washington where she was needed. Her thoughts were all over the place, he was messing with her head, intentionally or not. Why was she jealous of Detective White? She didn’t even have feelings for Mulder, they were only colleagues and he’d made it blatantly clear he didn’t have any interest in her – if he had he was so arrogant that he would’ve made a move when they first met, not waited two years with an unrequited crush. This was maddening.  
“Hey, Scully, wait up!” he ran after her.  
She had no desire to speak to him and she was so pent up with emotion, she feared what would slip out if she did. He caught up to her then, matching her pace.  
“Scully what’s up?” he said breathlessly “why are you acting like this?”  
She came to a halt and turned to face him.  
“Like what, Mulder?” She pursed her lips, trying to maintain her cold demeanour.  
“Like this, you’re not normally like this, running off and ignor-”  
“I don’t have time for this, we’re gonna miss our flight”  
In a way, she felt guilty, she was taking out her anger at herself on him. It wasn’t his fault that him getting with another woman made her jealous, it’s not like her and Mulder were romantically involved, it was all in her head. But at the same time, she couldn’t help but think it was his own fault and he’d brought this upon himself, he’d been all but professional.  
  
It wasn’t until they were on the plane that he made another attempt at conversation. He sat gazing out the window, repeatedly glancing over at her while she read over her notes, biding his time. He was getting more fidgety as time went on and eventually it became noticeable, it was getting on her nerves. She sighed as she put the case notes down on the tray in front of her and took off her glasses.  
“What is it, Mulder?” impatience evident in her voice.  
“I just want to know what I did, that’s all”.  
She couldn’t help thinking that he was acting like a child.  
“You know fine well what you did”  
“Hey I didn’t initiate that, she jumped on me when I wasn’t expecting it, I-”.  
She cut him off again.  
“Like I said, I didn’t see anything”  
“Because nothing happened”  
“I’m not going to argue about this here” she said through gritted teeth, her voice an angry low whisper, motioning to the surrounding passengers with her glasses. “Besides, shouldn’t you be working on finishing off this case seeing as you did nothing these past few days besides being smitten by Detective White?” she added smugly, much to his confusion.  
“Hey, I did my fair share!”  
“I can’t be bothered with this right now, Mulder”  
He turned back to the window, sulking as he normally did when Scully fell out with him and he knew he was in the wrong (though he never admitted it or apologised, something that forever grated on her nerves). She returned to her case notes but her mind was elsewhere. She hated the rare days when they had a disagreement, normally despite their differences in opinion they were perfectly matched and she always felt at home in his presence, something she loved about him. But now there was nothing she wanted more than to get back to her apartment for he was really testing her patience. This time it was definitely mostly his fault, he was being difficult - he’d been the one to ditch her any chance he got, and mostly in favour of some time with White. Normally she hated to be apart from him but these past few days she’d been grateful for the separation.  
Her thoughts were still running wild when they landed back in Washington and she was eager to be home... but he was still Mulder and he might be grating on her right now, but his good nature had not vanished completely.  
“Here Scully, let me give you a lift home”  
“It’s fine honestly Mulder, I’ll just get a taxi”  
“Scully I always give you a ride, my cars right here see? A taxi will take a while to come, I can’t leave you standing here by yourself it’s getting late”  
“I can look after myself Mulder, I’m a grown woman”  
“And that’s why as a gentleman I have to offer you a ride. Get in, don’t be difficult, lemme make it up to you”  
He was overly polite and it bothered her, but she could see he was remorseful even if he didn’t fully understand why he’d irritated her and she couldn’t turn him down no matter how hard she tried.  
“Fine” she sighed, finally caving in. “....Thank You”  
“No worries”. He smiled and held the door for her.  
She knew he did care for her, even if he had a funny way of showing it, and even though he had his faults, he was still Mulder after all. But she hadn’t forgiven him just yet, this still didn’t excuse his off behaviour the past few days. They drove home in silence, obvious tension still between them, though it had lessened since they’d left Comity.  
“See you Monday” he smiled, leaning over the seat as she got out.  
“See you Mulder” she sighed.  
She was glad it was Friday, she needed a good rest. Normally when they were assigned to a case that required travelling, she secretly loved it, it was like they were off on another adventure together and to be honest, the majority of the time ‘adventure’ was the perfect way to describe it. Her favourite thing though, was that their rooms were never far apart and he’d always get bored of the crappy motel television and invite her over for a beer. She knew it was mostly because he had nothing better to do and they were more than just work acquaintances by now, they were friends, so it was natural that they would hang out, but part of her always hoped it was something more, that they’d do more than just have a drink and have a laugh. But he had his tapes for that – or another random woman he’d managed to chat up. From what she’d seen, Mulder wasn’t one for commitment, his commitment was to his farfetched beliefs.  
  
She made it up to her apartment and flicked on the light. The same old boring, empty room greeted her. Normally when she came home from a trip she pictured herself coming home with or to Mulder, or just someone, anyone - she hated coming home to an empty flat... but usually she imagined Mulder. Right now she was almost grateful she lived alone, though she wouldn’t have minded someone that she could’ve let her frustrations out on. She used to call Melissa and have a good old chat but that was no longer an option. She still felt pain at the loss of her sister though it was less raw than it used to be. She had few friends bar Mulder and Melissa had been some of the only other company she kept... now she only had her partner and she couldn’t very well ring him to complain.  
Instead she put down her bag and hung her jacket up before reaching for the fridge, grabbing a beer and settling on the sofa, kicking her shoes off as she did so and imagining the usual Mulder, whom she knew and loved, was there beside her.


	2. When Love Comes Knocking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mulder comes to apologise and Scully can't quite take it

Scully awoke the next morning slightly later than usual. Thank God it was Saturday, she needed a lie-in, especially after last night. She rolled out of bed, groaning at the ever so slight hangover/headache and got dressed in just a tshirt and sweatpants. She made her way to the kitchen, aware that she was dragging her feet and her jogging bottoms were too long and therefore trailing along the floor but she didn’t care, she’d had a tough week and needed a break. Memories of how she’d acted towards Mulder yesterday came flooding back and she groaned – she’d need to apologise... although so did he, he wasn’t totally off the hook just yet. She half-heartedly opened the fridge and pulled out the milk, unscrewing the lid to smell it. She hadn’t been home in a week but it smelt alright and hey, it was off she’d just have to get ill, what did she care, at least she’d avoid the confrontation that was due with Mulder on Monday. She paused – this was so out of character for her, she couldn’t just skip work because of ‘boy problems’ like some lovesick teenager. She put the milk back, though she didn’t have the energy to properly get dressed and go to the shop so she decided just to skip breakfast, she could perhaps make some bacon later. She made her way to the living room and groaned when she saw the mess - several empty beer bottles sat on the coffee table and a half-eaten bowl of crisps lay next to them. She brushed her hair off her forehead with her hand and sighed, grabbing the bottles and returning them to the kitchen, half disgusted at herself and half wondering how she didn’t consume more alcohol considering the week she’d had.  
She returned to the living room and was sat slouched on the sofa flicking through the channels, last night’s bowl of crisps in hand, when the doorbell rang.  
“Shit” she cursed.  
She haphazardly threw the bowl down on the coffee table and stood up, brushing the crumbs off her as best she could. She jogged to the door but paused before opening it, checking her hair in the mirror in the hallway.  
“Who the fuck could this be?” she thought as she undid the chain and yanked the door open. “Probably the postman or somethi- Mulder?!”  
She got the shock of her life, what the fuck was he doing here?, she hadn’t even thought about what to say to him - she didn’t even know where to start. Her thoughts were a mess within seconds but before she’d even had a minute to try and organise them, he spoke.  
“Hey Scully... Dana” he said, staring at the floor, wincing when he looked up at her.  
“Mulder... What are you doing here? It’s Saturday I wasn’t expecti-“  
“I know, I know, I kinda turned up without warning um... sorry about that I, I thought if I... if I rang you wouldn’t pick up I err... I came to apologise”  
So many things were off... he never called her Dana for one, and the usually-confident agent was muddling his words. He looked so nervous... so awkward.  
“Oh um, I don’t know what to say, than- thank you. I um... I should apologise too, I was out of order”  
“No please, Scully, it was my fault, I was being an ass. Not only should the case have been my priority but I didn’t even think about how you must’ve felt...” His voice quietened a little, he’d obviously thought this out. “I have more respect for you than that. I um... I know you don’t really want an explanation but I think you deserve one. I err, I thought Detective White was ...attractive, um but I wasn’t planning on making a move, she just came over to discuss some things and I’d had something to drink and she just pounced on me and well, you just walked in right that second, you’ve got pretty bad timing.... but, no it was my fault, I apologise Scully, you’re my right hand man, so to speak, you should come first”  
“Mulder.... it’s fine, honestly. I’m sorry too I... I wasn’t thinking, you’re a free man you can do what you like in your free time, it’s not my place to interfere”  
She managed a smile and he returned the gesture.  
“Anyways, I um... I bought you something as a means of apology”  
She’d been so caught up in her thoughts, she hadn’t even noticed he was carrying anything. He held out a bouquet of flowers and smiled his huge dorky grin. She chuckled at him, she couldn’t stay mad at him when he was like this.  
“Oh Mulder, you shouldn’t have” she laughed, taking the flowers from him appreciatively.  
“Well... y’know, I kinda figured I might need a partner to help me hunt down those aliens I’m so obsessed with”  
“Oh mmhm the truth comes out eventually”  
The two of them laughed and any leftover tension or awkwardness from yesterday faded away and they were almost instantly back to the regular banter they often shared.  
“Hey why don’t you come in, have a sit down?”  
“If it’s no bother?” he smiled his goofy grin again  
“No no of course not, make yourself feel at home, I’ll just go grab a vase for these”  
She wandered back to the kitchen, admiring the gesture from someone who was normally such a stubborn, self-centred man and felt herself falling for him even harder.  
“Fuck” she thought to herself “this really has to stop, we’re just friends” but part of her was secretly enjoying it and she knew there was little chance of her reigning this crush in anytime soon. “Who’s it hurting anyway... so long as I keep it to myself”

As she busied herself filling a vase with water, he hung his coat up and settled on the sofa, sneaking some of the crisps from the bowl that still lay there and hoping she wouldn’t notice. She made her way back through and placed the vase of flowers on the windowsill.  
“Thanks again, Mulder” she beamed as she stood back and admired them, more pleased with the bother he’d gone to to apologise more than anything else, she almost didn’t believe it.  
He smiled and nodded in acknowledgement.  
“Well, um, actually... have you eaten?”  
“huh?”  
“I was wondering if I could do the honours of taking you to breakfast... or lunch, my treat?” he paused and his voice quietened again ever so slightly. “If you... wanna”.  
Scully raised her eyebrows in surprise and placed her hands on her hips  
“Fox Mulder, never would I ever have guessed you could be such a gentleman, now I see why you get all the ladies” she mused. “Are you sure?”  
“Positive!” he almost jumped at the chance.  
“Then I’d love to!.... I’ll have to go get ready real quick though, you don’t mind hanging round here for a sec do you? You can watch some TV if you’d like” she leaned over and lightly tossed him the dobber from the TV stand. “Do you want a drink?”  
“No no I’m fine honestly, you go get ready, don’t worry about me” he smiled.  
“Right! Thanks Mulder” she smiled at him and turned, hurrying off to her bedroom.  
Once she’d shut the door behind her, her cool and calm demeanour disintegrated. She pressed her back against the door and pushed her hair back with both of her hands, breathing out a long breath and trying to get her mind in order.  
“Is this a date? No... it’s just an apology... right? It’s not some grand gesture... no no, we’re just friends, platonic work colleagues... platonic work colleagues who buy each other flowers. No, he was just being nice, calm it Dana... Oh my god why am I freaking out, I’ve spent over 2 years of my life with him almost 24/7 I’m never normally like this, why now?! Calm, calm, calm... if I didn’t have a crush on him I wouldn’t be second guessing this I’d just be going along with it as normal... okay okay I’ve got to keep it together, I can’t keep him waiting, he’ll think I’m having a breakdown in here... not that I’m not or anything... okay okay pull yourself together”  
Her thoughts were once again a chaotic mess.  
“Why does he always have this effect on me? I’m normally so clear headed”.

She tried her best not to overthink it as she hurried around trying to make herself look presentable, not that she’d ever bothered much before.  
Finally wearing something it was acceptable to wear out in public, she stood infront of the mirror and smoothed her shirt, checking her hair one last time.  
“I’m normally so confident, so independent... so not-phased by men, what’s happening” she thought. “Okay here goes, just act normal Dana... please don’t be all jittery and awkward and weird and-”  
She took a deep breath and pulled open her bedroom door, ignoring the crazy-teenager thoughts in her head and stepped out to into the living room.  
“Okay! I’m all set” she smiled at him, putting on a brave face.  
“Great! Let’s get going then!” he beamed back, turning off the TV and sitting up to look at her.


End file.
